Kayaking, Kayaking and yet more Kayaking.......

 It's been a glorious week here at Palm Cove.  The wind has died down to a gently breeze and it is the perfect time to be out on the water.  We aren't the only ones to think that as we have watched jet skis, paddle-boarders, kayakers, canoeists and water skiers all enjoying the magnificent weather.  The only ones to put away their gear are the wind surfers!

Philip inflated our canoe some time ago and we have been waiting patiently for the wind to drop so that we can hit the water.  For our first trip in the kayak this week we did a slow paddle up and down the Palm Cove coastline as we didn't want to push ourselves too hard.  We knew that we wanted to do this on a fairly regular basis and you don't want to have burn-out on the first trip.

Honestly, to paddle along the coastline you would not know that there is a whole village beyond the trees. It is excellent town planning by the council to have kept so many beautiful trees along the foreshore.  As I go for my morning walk I am simply in awe of the centuries old Paperbarks that grace the area.  They truly are magnificent and need to be protected.  Having said that though, some of the trees are near their end and it is not uncommon for the trees to shed one of the larger limbs that could easily kill you if you were unfortunate enough to be under it.

Palm Cove playing "hidey" amongst the palm trees

But, getting back to the kayak, today we decided to circumnavigate Double Island.  The island was once home to an exclusive resort for the rich and famous but it was sold to a Chinese company some years ago and has sadly (apparently) fallen to "rack and shambles".  We were on the water by 6am and it was a perfect paddle to the island that is roughly 1.5km from Palm Cove.  There were lots of other kayakers who had the same idea as us and indeed there are lots of tour groups that visit the island on a daily basis.  

We paddled slowly around the island passing Stand-up Paddle-Boarders who we silently congratulated on the effort they put it!  We then passed fisherman fishing from their canoes and I'm sure they would have caught plenty because as we rounded the island, the water became incredibly clear and shallow and we could see lots of schools of fish swimming in and out of the giant seaweed and coral.  

We stopped paddling on the southern side of the island and just floated with the tide to observe what lay under us. It is truly spectacular and literally took my breath away.  I am not a water sign being a Virgo, but I just love being in and near the water.  I find it both calming and soothing. 

We were home again by 8.30 and tucked into a big feed of bacon and eggs.....perfect. Now we are just contemplating taking our beach lounges down to the waters edge to do a little reading, swimming and sun-baking.  Life is good.

xx Judi